Mobile Casinos

Online slots have become one of the world’s most popular games in the past couple of decades, and the evolution of video slots and progressives has made the pastime more lucrative than ever before. In the past few years our dependence on smartphones for entertainment has also skyrocketed, and mobile casino has become one of the largest new markets to blossom.

Recommended Casinos

The user experience is very good, and you really feel like the casino is out to give you a great time, not just to rake in profit.

Up to £1,600 Bonus and 120 free spins! Significant Terms: 18+ Deposit Bonus, new customers only. Tiered bonus on first four deposits. Min. £10 deposit. 35x wagering before bonus or free spin winnings are withdrawable. £5 max bonus bet. Free spins on pre-selected games and subject to change. Free spins must be used within 3 days. See site for full T&Cs. www.begambleaware.org

Regular online casinos are (or should be) diverting large swathes of their budget into mobile software development to bring a previously unachievable level of flexibility. Today you can play online slots walking to work, on a break or on the bus into town before a night out. And, with increasing quality of graphics and gaming experience, you’re taking all the thrills of visiting a real casino (including the massive jackpots and bonuses) and carrying them around in your pocket.

Mobile gaming is fairly new, but it is growing at a blistering pace to meet demand. The liberty of having your favourite games with you 24-7 is massive, and that’s why people love mobile-optimised casinos. Check out our recommended mobile casino providers for the safest, most rewarding gaming experience.

How Do We Rate Our Mobile Casinos?

Games Selection

The trouble with some mobile casinos is that they offer a very limited percentage of their total game catalogue, preferring to shift customers to their desktop site. Good mobile casino providers don’t bother with that – they make their whole collection available and ready to play on-demand, just like a regular online casino.

In addition, we check the quality of those games provided. It’s no use having 500 unknown and poorly performing games – there should be high-value progressive and popular titles in the mix, offering a choice diversity without compromising on user experience.

Device Compatibility

Many online casinos can be accessed on a tablet or smartphone, but if the website isn’t optimised for mobile, it can be a bit of a trial to play. The wrong sized buttons, difficulty seeing the reels and inconsistent glitches are all common problems with poorly designed mobile platforms.

A good mobile casino will have the entire theme scaled appropriately, with larger buttons, adapted menus and reels that fill the screen. It should work across multiple operating systems (at the very least Android and iOS) and devices, like tablets. If a mobile casino can provide consistent quality across a range of devices, then it gets a major thumbs up.

Ease of Account Operations

Many users want to use their mobile as the only form of slots they play, without having to consider using the desktop site. For that, we need mobile platforms that allow you to create an account, deposit and withdraw cash and access customer support in case of a problem.

Banking options are a thorn in the side of many mobile casinos as they struggle to overcome the technical hurdles involved, and it’s an important mark of their quality.

How to Play Mobile Casino

Game Apps vs Casino Apps vs Optimised Websites

This is an ongoing debate right now, and no side has a majority. You can download apps of specific games and have it ready to go on your device. You register, deposit, play and withdraw all through that specific game and, if you want to play anything else, you download a new app.

An alternative is to use broader, more-established online casinos who have developed an app of their own with a selection of games contained within. This often won’t represent the entire game catalogue available on the desktop site, but it will allow you to move between different games more easily.

The final option is to simply to create regular casinos websites which are fully optimised for mobile. This way you load your browser and get instant, in-browser access to all of the casinos mobile-compatible games – hopefully all of them.

There are definite benefits to all three, and right now it’s a personal choice with no clear “better” option. If you find one game you particularly like, then there’s little reason to go through the whole website every time you want to play; conversely, playing with a huge, experienced casino brings its own benefits.

Best Games for Mobile Casino

Slots are probably the most popular mobile casino game (as they are with desktop sites) but the likes of blackjack, roulette and some poker games are heavily liked. Really, the best games for mobile casino come down to personal preference; there’s no definitive list of the “best” games for every person.

Best Devices

As a rule, it’s safer to use an Android or iOS (Apple) device than anything else. They dominate the tech market and few developers will expand beyond this comfort zone into other, less popular operating systems at first. Within those OS’s, any tablet or smartphone should work, though older models might struggle a bit.

The graphics are generally HD, but you’ll need a high-resolution screen (1920x1080p) to get the best viewing experience out of your device and a decent processor to make gameplay seamless without draining the battery. Make sure you’re on Wi-Fi to avoid incurring data charges as you play, especially if you’re in HD.

Download Options

With an internet connection, navigate to the app store on your device (regardless of which operating system you’re running) and search for “mobile casino” or “mobile slots” – whatever comes up can be downloaded and played there and then. By only searching in your OS database, you won’t face the disappointment of realising a game you like the sound of isn’t actually available for your device.

The alternative is to use Google to see what’s out there. Look up the best mobile casinos and how to access them: most sites with downloadable apps will allow you to filter by OS or device type, which make finding games easier.

Personally, I’m often attracted to specific games (like big-name progressives or super-fun numbers like Thunderstruck II) and so I’ll Google that specific game and see if it’s available on my device. If it is, I’ll look up the best casinos for playing that game (aka the casino with the best mobile compatibility) and then manage the download directly on their site.

Conclusion

Mobile casino isn’t perfect right now, but with the clamouring for improvement from players and the continuous investment from developers, it’s only a matter of time until it becomes every bit as secure and reliable as the desktop sites.

What we can say is that if you start gaming on mobile with a reliable app or adequately optimised website, then you’re about to discover an online casino experience like no other, with the ability to play whenever and wherever you want, with only your device’s battery to worry about!